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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28972704">The Greyness Scares Me</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/BonfireRose/pseuds/BonfireRose'>BonfireRose</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Not Beta Read, One Shot, Post-Canon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 07:53:57</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,020</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28972704</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/BonfireRose/pseuds/BonfireRose</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Nagito stands on the beach while his feet get wet and his world breaks again.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>98</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Greyness Scares Me</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>The tenses in this are going to be messed up but I don't have the energy to fix it right now.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The sun had just set, but there was still light in the sky. The roaring waves still had a touch of summery sparkle, and visibility was still good, but the colors were fading.</p><p>Nagito watched the world fade to grey, like he did most nights.</p><p>Another salty wave washed over his bare feet, making him shiver slightly. He didn't move from his spot. He just watched.</p><p>The island was serene at night. Well, it was serene most of the time anyway. Lofty palm trees and soft warm sand extended a promising welcome, assuring that any time spent here would be peaceful. Nagito's time here had been pretty relaxing, if he didn't count the murders of his classmates and everything that went with it.</p><p>Yet another wave rolled in, stronger than the ones before it. Nagito stumbled, but did not fall. He stayed by the shore, away from everyone else, where he wouldn't have to confront anything or anyone.</p><p>"Nagito?"</p><p>Damn it.</p><p>He didn't bother to turn and look for the source. He simply let the speaker, Hajime, run over and stand before him.</p><p>A boy with no talents. A boy with all of them.</p><p>"It's getting cold," Hajime said. "You should come inside."</p><p>Nagito's hollow smile was his only response. He tried to focus on the emerging stars, or the way the wind ruffled the island's flora, or even how cold his feet were. He tried to not think about Hajime.</p><p>A boy who helped destroy the world. A boy who helps to save it.</p><p>"I mean it." Hajime’s voice grew firmer. "I don't want you falling ill or getting injured. It's getting darker too."</p><p>Nagito feels his smile falter. No, he can't let it fall. He attempts to not think about anything altogether. This fails miserably and quickly. His attention is forced back to Hajime’s red and hazel eyes.</p><p>The boy he wants to run away from. The boy he wants to get closer to.</p><p>"Please, Nagito," Hajime whispers, taking a single step closer. As much as Nagito wants to step away, he holds his ground. "Nobody has even seen you for a few days now. We're worried."</p><p>Interesting use of the word "we" there. Nagito is fairly certain Hajime is the only one who can even tolerate him. If anyone else cares for his well-being, they don't show it. It hurts. But it's better that way. He can't bear to be in anyone's presence. Even being near Hajime now is making his head hurt.</p><p>The boy he openly mocked. The boy he nearly confessed to.</p><p>Hajime doesn't speak again for quite some time. He merely watches Nagito's face as the calm fake smile withers and dies. Nagito stares at the ground, watching another wave wash over his feet. He knows he can't hide anything from Hajime’s artificially analytical gaze.</p><p>Nagito has a choice to leave. But Hajime will just find him again. It's a false pretense of a choice. Rather than drag this out, he leaves his fate in the other boy’s hands.</p><p>The boy he hates. The boy he loves.</p><p>Or at least, the concept he hates. He's not sure anymore.</p><p>Hajime takes another step closer.</p><p>"We're all grey."</p><p>Nagito looks up, mildly surprised. He knew Hajime’s talent as the artificial Ultimate Hope was great, but he hadn’t expected to be exposed quite this early.</p><p>"I'm not black or white. You aren't. None of us are. We're grey." Hajime's voice has gone unusually soft. "You aren't the only one struggling with this."</p><p>For the first time, Nagito speaks.</p><p>"The greyness scares me."</p><p>Hajime always knew just how to break down every carefully crafted wall that Nagito had built.</p><p>He felt his head swim with thoughts, thoughts that had lay buried for far too long. Hajime seemed to fade before his eyes, overtaken by the incomprehensible greyness. The greyness that blurred the lines of hope and despair until there was no hope left in sight. The greyness that made talent meaningless. The greyness that infected the whole world, leaving no path forward, no truth or lies, no connection, no answers, just shades of grey and shades of grey and impossible, confusing, hopeless, broken, painful...</p><p>"...gito? Nagito? Can you hear me?"</p><p>With his last shred of mental strength, Nagito focused entirely on the voice. He shoved aside all the greyness and let Hajime pull him back to reality.</p><p>He opened his eyes. He was sitting on the wet sand in a few inches of water, his knees curled up tightly to his chest. He was shivering even worse now. Hajime was kneeling next to him, with no regard for the cold ocean.</p><p>"The greyness scares me too," Hajime whispered. "But... there are people I love within that greyness. So I'm trying to learn how to handle it."</p><p>For a brief, wonderful moment, Nagito wondered if he's one of those people. That moment gets shut down by common sense. He's trash. Why would anyone care about him?</p><p>Then again, why was Hajime still with him?</p><p>"I just don't know where to go." The words are out of Nagito's mouth before he can stop them. "I want follow hope. I want to follow the light. But..." he trails off, unable to untangle anything else from his mind. Hajime seems to understand anyway.</p><p>"I can't promise I know the right way to walk," Hajime says. "But... I'll walk with you, if you want. Whatever's next, I don't want you facing it alone."</p><p>Hajime reaches out, unwrapping Nagito's hands from his body. One of metal, one of flesh. And Hajime holds them both in his own hands just the same.</p><p>"I can't promise I'll ever be strong enough to face the shades of grey," Nagito says, his voice trembling and cracking. "But I'll try." A smile touches his face. It's small, but genuine. Hajime smiles back.</p><p>He can't resolve the conflict in his own mind, or in the outside world. All he can do is focus on the warmth of the hands holding his, and go from there.</p><p>And maybe let those hands lead him inside, out of the coldness of the night.</p>
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